Wrestling Wrap Up: Punk Mocks Lawler's Heart Attack!

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The WWE keeps it classy with Lawler's return. Plus, The Miz turns babyface for a night, Sheamus gets in a pub fight and TNA's Turning Point.

By Matt Fowler

Before I get into last night's RAW, which was the classiest of affairs, thought y'all might wanna see who you, the IGN/Wrap Up reader, picked as your favorite wrestlers. I had that "Who's Your Favorite Wrestler?" poll running off and on since last April and the results are in! Obviously David Arquette was number one, but aren't you curious to see how the rest of the list panned out? Like, where did Doink #4 land? How high did you guys rank Braden Walker? Was it possible for Battle Cat to take up more than one spot? It's all in here!

Granted, this really isn't your "Top 10" list. This is a list based on who you all voted for as your personal favorite wrestler ever. Which indeed explains why there are no "classic" legends, just mostly contemporaries that you personally grew up with. Still, any list not bitched about is a wasted endeavor, I say. Our "Great Depression" is our lives.

So. Jerry Lawler came back to RAW last night. Nine weeks after suffering a massive heart attack live on TV. Many, including myself, didn't really want to see The King back so soon. Yes, I wanted to know he's alive and thriving, but I've still got a certain amount of residual trauma from that night. Of course, it was horrific for Lawler and all those backstage who witnessed it. But what about the crowd? What about everyone watching? We sat for an hour and a half wondering if Lawler was dead. We hung on every word from Michael Cole - something that never happened before and will never happen again! People prayed for Lawler. He was in people's actual prayers.

So who owns that event? Emotionally. And yes, this is my awkward way of getting into the events that took place last night. Because, along with me simply being nervous about King coming back to RAW, there was also a part of me that was like "Please please please don't make his heart attack part of a storyline." And, in my mind, I went back and forth with "Nah, they'd never do that" and "Of course, they'll do that." Was it silly of me to think that Lawler might have been too fragile health-wise to head back onto live TV? Maybe? I don't know. All I know is what I personally feel. Now I'm not going to come out and say "I'm afraid that he's going to have another heart attack on the air." But I will admit this: "The person who's most likely to have a massive heart attack is the guy... who's already had a massive heart attack."

Images of hitting Jason Hervey with an &#Array;80s mobile phone flash before his eyes.

But since Lawler lived, and this didn't turn out to be full-blown tragedy, it was considered fair game to make light of - Irish wake-style. King came out and said his tearful thank-yous and then Punk's music hit. Punk came out and said he'd beat Jerry to death... again. He said that his title reign meant more than Lawler's heart attack and that Jerry's near-death experience was just a way to steal the spotlight. He called Jerry a zombie. Then Heyman faked a heart attack. So, you know. WWE keepin' it classy. And it got a ton of "booos." Lots of heat. But does the WWE care who the crowd is booing, or do they just want to hear that noise? Because I know most everyone, especially those who read this column, were booing the WWE and Vince. Not Punk, who certainly doesn't need this heat. Was this a last ditch effort to get those who like Punk to finally boo Punk? Because that won't work. Punk fans know the business. And they know a heel promo. And by the end of the show, they were still cheering Punk over Cena in the Main Event. It didn't matter.

A lot of people on Twitter defended the segment, saying it wasn't any different back in the "Attitude Era" that we all pine for. And part of that's true - though you never heard any Owen or Droz jokes, didja? Also, they brought up that Lawler must have "okay"d this, and Punk had to have felt comfortable enough to do it. But I don't give a s*** about any of that. It's Lawler's heart and it was his life on the line, but he collapsed on live TV and brought all of us into it. We all own this. And I honestly don't believe, as strange as this might sound, this experience was Lawler's to give away. If he did, mind you. That being said, we all know this was Vince. And we're still not sure if Lawler agreed to do this gleefully or reluctantly. But one thing's for certain: Vince just dropped $80 million over four years trying to get Linda into the Senate and right now - he ain't even give a f***. Those who wondered if he'd be more berserk than ever might have gotten their answer. In closing, if Lawler does wind up having a fatal attack in the next year or so, some people are gonna feel like absolute crap.

More from RAW, including Vickie's new evidence again Cena and AJ, on page 2...